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Five to try: Antipodeans
Evening Standard 06.05.09THE MODERN PANTRY
47-48 St John's Square, EC1
(020 7250 0833) £38
Raised in New Zealand, Anna Hansen has named her restaurant well. Sidestepping fusion, the food is — as she said she wanted it — “happy and fresh”. She could have added original. Consider sea bass sashimi, truffled umeboshi dressing, shichimi and shiso cress or grilled orange, sesame and garlic-marinated poussin, fried potato, plantain and coriander cake. The ground-floor café is open all day.
GIACONDA DINING ROOM
9 Denmark Street, WC2
(020 7240 3334) £35
Paul Merrony, who made his name in Sydney, has worked with the Roux brothers in Britain and at Tour d'Argent in Paris. Self-styled “French-ish with a couple of day trips to Italy thrown in”, his menu delivers no-fuss pleasure. Paul's wife Tracey, who runs the room, is a vital component in the package.
E&O
14 Blenheim Crescent, W11
(020 7229 5454) £43
A meal last week at XO in Belsize Park, another outlet in Aussie Will Ricker's empire, confirmed my view that the Notting Hill branch is best at pan-Asian snacks for the snippy eater. A greatest hits menu includes dim sum, tempura, maki rolls, Thai curries, spicy salads and that sine qua non of the exotic, black cod with miso. I'm not sure that I agree with Adrian Gill that E&O is better than Nobu, but it is cheaper.
THE LEDBURY
127 Ledbury Road, W11 (020 7792 9090) £40 (lunch)
Brett Graham from Sydney (above), a protégé of Phil Howard at The Square, is spreading his cheffy wings. Celeriac baked in salt crust served with a pork kromeski is one example. John Dory steamed with ras el hanout with a garnish of crab and pine nuts is another. The set lunch is a relative bargain and recipient of the same impeccable service. Also, note Graham's influential connection with the Harwood Arms gastropub in Fulham.
PIED A TERRE
34 Charlotte Street, W1 (020 7636 1178) £50 (lunch)
When Tom Aikens had to hurry away after a kitchen fracas, Shane Osborn, who arrived in Britain from Perth at the age of 20, took over the reins and 2003 saw the restaurant regain its second Michelin star. Deconstructed ingredients, dabs of sauce and pictures on a plate is the style and if you like that sort of thing it will be the sort of thing you like — exceedingly well executed.
OTHER WIZARDS OF OZ: Masterchef honcho John Torode opens The Luxe in Spitalfields this summer and David Thompson of Nahm is still promising Thai food cheaper and jollier than at his flagship.
Prices estimate a meal with wine for one
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